In the News

 A. Neil Pappalardo ’64 (1942-2026), was long-time friend and supporter of the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering. Photo: Courtesy of the Pappalardo Family. 

A. Neil Pappalardo ‘64, a child of Sicilian immigrants, was raised in a small village outside of Rochester, New York. When he was in the 8th grade, he announced to his parents he would attend MIT, and he was ultimately the first person from his high school to do so. While at MIT, Pappalardo studied physics and electrical engineering. He received the SB in electrical engineering and computer science in 1964 and later founded MEDITECH, which pioneered health care information systems for hospitals and medical facilities, and eventually became one of the largest privately held software companies in the world.

In interviews through the years, including his 2008 “Reflections on an MIT Education” and a conversation for MIT’s Infinite History Project, Pappalardo shared that his connection to the Department of Mechanical Engineering (MechE) grew from his belief that too many MIT courses during his years of study focused on analysis when they should focus on design. After meeting with MechE faculty and seeing design competitions in action in the early 1990s, he found alignment between his vision and MechE’s mission.

Neil Pappalardo passed away on January 27, 2026, at the age of 83. He leaves behind his wife of 61 years, Jane; their four children; 13 grandchildren; and an extended, loving family. He also leaves an incredible legacy that has shaped education in MechE at MIT.

“Neil was a tremendous friend and supporter of MechE. The experiences of several thousand MechE students have been shaped by the Pappalardo Lab, including through courses 2.007 (which was 2.70 when Neil first engaged with MechE) and 2.009 which have been at home in the Pappalardo Lab for 31 years and counting. His commitment and close connections to MechE have been truly transformative to our community.” says John Hart, Class of 1922 Professor and head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Pappalardo was a life member emeritus of the MIT Corporation and served on four visiting committees, for Mechanical Engineering, the Libraries, EAPS, and Physics, and was a member of both the School of Engineering and School of Science Dean’s Advisory Councils. He served continuously on the MechE Visiting Committee starting in 1993, including as chair from 1997 to 2010, and as a life member emeritus since 2017.

Together, Neil and Jane Pappalardo established the Pappalardo Curriculum Development Fund and the Pappalardo Graduate Student Support Fund, the latter of which has supported over 130 students since it was established in 2003. They also funded the extensive renewal and modernization of MechE’s undergraduate teaching laboratories on the ground floor of Building 3, and a full mechanical engineering professorship in design, which was first held by the late Professor Woodie Flowers, then by Professor Alex Slocum, and now is held by Professor Peko Hosoi.

“It is impossible for me to capture in a few sentences the tremendous impact that Neil has had on our department, our students, our community, and on me personally,” says Hosoi. “From the minute I met Neil as a young, eager (nervous!) junior faculty member, he was supportive, wise, visionary, kind, and instrumental in expanding my understanding of what is possible.”

Having taught 2.009 for the past two years, Hosoi says she has a first-hand appreciation of what the Pappalardo Lab brings to MechE students. “They leave with not only first-class engineering skills, but also with a renewed sense of confidence, purpose, and connections to people who will be friends for life. Neil saw all of this and in his charming way, nudged us to where we needed to go and provided the support to make it happen. I am forever grateful to Neil, and I could not be more proud of my title as Pappalardo Professor of Mechanical Engineering.”

“Neil’s impact on students has been immeasurable,” says Warren Seering, the Weber-Shaughness Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Co-Director of the System Design and Management (SDM) Program. “Practically every Mechanical Engineering undergraduate has life changing experiences in the Pappalardo Lab… Neil’s vision for the configuration and use of the Lab has enabled completely new ways of both flexible and structured student learning and the consequent emergence of an ethos of mind, hand, and collaboration that has changed the culture of the department.”

Alexander Slocum, who held the Pappalardo Professor title before Hosoi and is now the Walter M. and A. Hazel May Professor of Mechanical Engineering, penned the following reflection about Pappalardo’s impact:

Neil Pappalardo

Enabled so many to know

The great opportunity of college

And 2 receive the great gift of knowledge

He will live on in many a heart and mind

As he was so very wise and kind

With bandwidth to spare

For us, always there